• 4 cups popped microwave popcorn (plain white popcorn, not butter-flavored!)

• 1 tablespoon (14 grams) unsalted butter, melted

• 1¼ cup (150 grams) all-purpose flour

• ½ teaspoon baking soda

• ¼ teaspoon salt

• ½ cup (113 grams) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature

• ½ cup (109 grams) light brown sugar, packed

• ⅓ cup (67 grams) granulated sugar

• 1 large egg

• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

• 1 cup (100 grams) roughly chopped malted milk balls

• coarse sea salt, for sprinkling

Preheat oven to 350°F. Adjust oven racks to be in the top and bottom thirds of the oven.

Place popped popcorn in a large mixing bowl, sifting through your fingers to avoid getting unpopped kernels in the bowl. Pour 1 tablespoon melted butter over the popcorn. If your popcorn does not already have salt added, sprinkle in a pinch of salt. Toss with a spoon to cover the popcorn.

In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, and salt. Set aside. In the bowl of a standing mixer, combine butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar. Beat on medium-high speed for 2 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and add egg and vanilla. Beat for another 30 seconds to 1 minute, until egg is totally mixed in. With the mixer on the lowest speed, gradually add flour mixture, and stop mixing when there is still a little flour visible.

Remove the bowl from the stand mixer. Pour in buttered popcorn, and gently fold into the dough. The popcorn pieces will break down somewhat as you stir, but be careful not to crush them too much. When popcorn is almost evenly distributed, add chopped malted milk balls (even the dust!), and fold into the dough.

Scoop heaping tablespoons of dough onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or a Silpat mat, spacing each dough ball at least 1 inch apart. Sprinkle the tops of each dough ball with coarse sea salt. Bake for 10-12 minutes, rotating and switching the top and bottom trays halfway through baking. The edges will look slightly brown (12 minutes was the time that worked best in my oven!).

Allow to cool on baking sheets for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. The cookies will deflate a little once they come out of the oven, and will end up thin, with crispy edges and chewy centers.

Adapted from Joy the Baker